Mu En's Reward: Enter the Golden Tree!

"Sea God Island is the heart of Shrek Academy." Standing beside Sea God Lake, Zhou Yi explained to Ye Ming, Gu Yuena, and Wang Qiuer, who stood beside her:

"Originally, the academy consisted only of the inner academy—Sea God Island. It was only expanded into the Shrek Academy of today at the urging of several great empires."

"Sea God Island is a place that every outer academy student of Shrek dreams of entering."

"But you have earned this honor."

Zhou Yi felt both gratified and faintly envious.

From the moment Ye Ming and the other two joined forces to kill Ming Lei Douluo, their futures had become so bright they were almost blinding.

Even now, while the academy was still undergoing repairs, the Pavilion Master had already ordered that the three of them be summoned to Sea God Pavilion.

Moreover, from this point onward, the outer academy's classes were practically optional for them.

On Sea God Lake, Yan Shaozhe personally rowed through the waves to the shore and waved at the three of them.

Ye Ming and the others boarded the boat one after another. After bidding Zhou Yi farewell, they set off toward Sea God Island.

Sea God Lake was enormous, far larger than all the remaining grounds of Shrek Academy combined.

After sailing for more than a quarter of an hour and passing through the mist over the water, they gradually made out the island's appearance.

Sea God Island appeared to cover only about two square kilometers. Small hills stood in close succession across it, with pavilions and towers of all kinds built among them.

To Ye Ming's senses, the natural essence in this place was extraordinarily dense. It could even compare to Lake of Life when Tianmeng Ice Silkworm was not releasing its essence.

He knew that all of this had been accumulated over countless years by the Golden Tree, a tree that could be called a world tree.

After they went ashore, Yan Shaozhe led the three of them along a stone path deeper into Sea God Island.

As they neared the mountaintop, a pavilion came into view.

It was a three-story wooden building beneath the canopy of the Golden Tree. Its simple, ancient design carried an air of weathered age.

Above the entrance, three large gilded characters—Sea God Pavilion—shone brilliantly.

Yan Shaozhe walked to the entrance of Sea God Pavilion and bowed. "Teacher, they have arrived."

"Come in, all of you." An aged voice rang out. Then, without warning, the plain wooden building lit up. Dazzling golden radiance burst forth in an instant, turning the entire structure gold.

Dense yet gentle golden light drifted down and enveloped all three of them.

In that instant, an aura of light seeped into their bodies.

Bathed in the radiance, Ye Ming felt a slight warmth in his eyes. The fate and fortune that belonged to him in some unseen way became more tightly connected to his body.

Previously, he had been able to draw upon the power of fate while in Dragon God Transformation. Now, merely through his gold and silver eyes, he could easily stir the power of fate belonging to the Emperor Auspicious Beast.

Moreover, he had only just broken through to rank thirty-two, yet under the cleansing of this aura of light, the soul power within his body began to stir again.

More importantly, his already pure soul power had been cleansed once more, becoming even purer and more solid.

His foundation had been tempered to a terrifying degree.

Within his sea of spirit, the Golden Dragon Spear and Silver Dragon Spear trembled slightly, savoring the nourishment of the aura of light.

A moment later, all three opened their eyes, each with a trace of delight in them.

Clearly, each of them had gained something remarkable.

Upon entering the first floor of Sea God Pavilion, they saw a familiar old man reclining in a chair, looking at the three of them with a kindly expression.

Wang Qiuer tilted her head in surprise. "Grandpa Dorm Manager."

"Cough, cough!" Yan Shaozhe choked and hurriedly explained, "Teacher is the current Pavilion Master of Sea God Pavilion, commander of the Shrek Inspection Corps, a rank ninety-nine Ultimate Douluo, the Dragon God Douluo with the title of 'Dragon God'—Mu Lao!"

The three were instantly startled and bowed. "Greetings, Pavilion Master."

"Just call me Mu Lao." Mu En waved his hand with a faint smile. "There is no need to mention those empty titles. Shaozhe, go attend to your duties first. I want to speak with these children alone."

After Yan Shaozhe left, Mu En looked at the three of them with loving eyes.

Under the light's cleansing just now, he had confirmed once again that the three of them were not soul beasts in human form, but genuine humans.

This was the finest gift heaven could have bestowed upon Shrek Academy!

"Children, the academy suffered a great calamity this time, and you did very well." Mu En swept his gaze across the three of them, growing more satisfied the longer he looked.

In his usual observations,

Though Ye Ming could be somewhat impulsive, he had a kind heart and the greatest talent. With his Gold and Silver Dragon martial souls, he was the best candidate to inherit Mu En's legacy.

Gu Yuena usually kept a low profile. Though she possessed two personalities, she was the cleverest of the three and the most suited to lead the Soul Guidance Department.

Wang Qiuer had the purest heart among the three. Spotlessly innocent, she was like a blank sheet of paper untouched by even the slightest stain of society.

"Dean Yan has already told you about the reward for this incident, but the contributions you made to the academy were far too great. Your rewards will not be limited to that alone."

Mu En raised a hand and pointed lightly. A golden light flashed, and everything around them became illusory.

With another flash of golden light, the pavilion turned into a vast hall.

Several passageways lined both sides of the hall, leading to unknown destinations.

The three were still immersed in the change of surroundings when Mu En continued, "Sea God Pavilion was originally a great tree—the Golden Tree, a rare tree in this world that possesses the auras of light and life."

"Without harming the Golden Tree's life, the academy used it as its foundation and carved out Sea God Pavilion."

"It can be said that this Golden Tree is the very foundation of Shrek Academy."

Realization appeared on Ye Ming's face. "Then the golden barrier that covered all of Sea God Island that night was emitted by this Golden Tree?"

Mu En glanced at Ye Ming in surprise. He had not expected this boy to be so sensitive to the aura of light.

He nodded slightly. "The Pavilion Masters of Sea God Pavilion throughout the generations have chosen to connect themselves with the Golden Tree, borrowing its power to protect the academy."

"But that is not the Golden Tree's only wondrous use."

"This is the underground world of Sea God Pavilion. There are one hundred and eight rooms within these passageways, encompassing environments suitable for nearly every type of martial soul."

"Within those rooms, the Golden Tree pours in energy of light and life. They are supreme cultivation grounds for soul power and spiritual power. Every inner academy disciple has one chance to undergo deep meditation here."

"Though you three are not yet inner academy disciples, because you turned the tide in this crisis and killed a Titled Douluo, the academy is making a special exception to allow you to cultivate here."

Ye Ming and the other two had already gained enormous benefits merely from sensing the Golden Tree's cleansing. They could scarcely imagine what they would gain from cultivating within it.

"Thank you, Mu Lao!" The three bowed once again.

Mu En waved his hand. "The Golden Tree has accumulated a great deal of energy. How much you gain after entering will depend entirely on yourselves."

"Do not hold back for the academy's sake. You have earned this."

In Mu En's eyes, Ye Ming and the other two might possess extraordinary talent, but they were ultimately only Soul Elders and Great Soul Masters.

Even if they absorbed to their hearts' content, how much of the Golden Tree's energy could they possibly take in?

Little did he know that Ye Ming and the others possessed extraordinary identities and were no ordinary people.

Ye Ming secretly rejoiced. He had not expected the Holy Spirit Cult's invasion to give them such a tremendous opportunity instead.

Since Mu En had said so, he would have to absorb a ruthless wave of the Golden Tree's energy!

He would let this Pavilion Master of Sea God Pavilion witness the true potential of the Gold and Silver Dragon Kings!

"Ye Ming, enter the first passageway on the right. About twenty meters in, you will find a door. Go inside and cultivate on the meditation cushion."

"Gu Yuena, go to the left..."

"Wang Qiuer, go to the right..."

"When the three of you awaken from meditation, you may return to the outer academy."